Fire fighting apparatus



April 25, 1950 H. N. MCNAIR FIRE FIGHTING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed Sept. 22, 1944 RA W. mm wm N MR m H April 25, 1950 H. N. MQNAIRFIRE FIGHTING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept 22 1944 I INVENII'ORHUGH N Mc/VA/R BY!) w 6% E ATTORNEYS April 25, 1950 H. N. MONAIR2,505,055

FIRE FIGHTING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 22, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I v Wu: I

83 1 Ill INVENTOR mggMC/vA/R \v Mfiszfm April 25, 1950 H. N. M NAIR2,505,055

FIRE FIGHTING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 22, 1944 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 25, 1 950 -UNITED STATE- s I :"Ihisiinyeritionpertains toajm eth od of handlihg fire apparatus and improvements insuch a ar t -J1m efii emy-q h ap r greatly increased both as to thespeed andeffec- 1 tiveness with which individual lines are madeavailable at the fii'efarid the flexibi1ity""wit h wmeh agreat number ofthese lines can be manipulated. M y

v mohg the objectsof the iriviehtion is that of increasing the numberoiliiiespf hoseo'p'erated from a single truck 'of given capacity. Fireapparatus as at present manufactured hasfh'en developed withthepurpose'in'mirid 'of'usi'ng noz- Zlsi adapted "to p lay a solidstream on the Receiit 'developments which. have supplemented theso1id"'strearn' inc1ude the use ofso-called' to or fog fo'amwExisting"eduipme t iihay beused o deliver f ;but isiiotas eificient forthat. purpose as might bedesir'ed, although it \mayihave been fairlyefificinVin' thefdelivei'yfof Water in the conventional solid stream.'Otherbb'je'cts will appear as the disclosure progresses Fire apparatus,censtru ted and iu'se'dfin accordance with thefliiyerition' hereindescribedflis not only better adapte'dfto"themore' modern methods, butalso off .d 'firiite' advantages fn employed irr'the" delivery) of asolid 1 stream; or streams. It'm'aly still beus'ed in" accordance "withprior practice, r V. e.

v. According f'to themethod'practiced heret'efore, fire apparatus hashe'e'n driyenftothe' scene oijj'a fire, and ,at that point the firemenconnect the truck or other apparatus toa' supply ofwat'cr, and thencohnectar d stretch the lilies from the truck to the me, Noone'of theselehg'ths of hose (with the exception of thefhooster line, a small solidhose for use"?while connecting tothe main water supply) has beenpreviously connected to aninlet or outlet, but each is packed in thehody 9 he irw animus e taK L r m that ho itiohjjdrawn out mapuaii nsconnected. y L For example; the lines from the truck to the fire m dstbe cdrinectdio the'outlets and, in seine/ir stances,thenotzziesjattached. rThe lines from the truck tdfthe'hydraritf'brjother water supply must be comiectedetthe truck; andstretched backto that supply ofjw a'ter. {All oi fthis requiresactiyityhy'several "fireiiien and 'cohsu'mes a consideratile'amouht pf H A I h,

'It is pieieratal th'atth fire truck be iocatedas eeri t th e nt typeith w h a hyi nt r ur on t wi h a tra l p m fo i fi ne it e e pres urepr. o rw se plying izvater uncler reguir ed pressure at the noz- 121e te: e i a b is cat d t he os fa v nefficiency is increased' sirice thequipment. car- 'i iedlbyth truck; e. g., ladders, hooks, axes, etc., reere e eess b ek r, a

J'Forthe'practicepf the prese t'method and in fi ie member. di fi lt swfire trucig has beep so. redesigried and reconstructed that theiineswhich are extended from the truck to the fire areat all times during usecehiie'cted to lthefbutiet of the 'm anifolifl haye their I IZZIeS'jaIre'ady attached, and i each one of thjese liriespf hjoseisespecially'packed in its own cempartmehtyyhich .isdesigried so as tofacilitate quielg iembv'al or: the lines, each of which maybe'exteiidedilte" and. used at the fire independeri'tly of the others. Theb'bdy' ofthe truck is employed for carrying the l'rigths'offhose, which'go to make up theiine or lines running from thetruckfto the, hydrant"jor' other, supplyTof water. and to carry "jeiitra li ies for specialpurposes. Generally this'ho'seis -foot'1engths. r

To makepo'ssibie 'the'confstructmn and method herein describ'ed, thetruck isprovided'with What is termedfamanifold. I This'manifoldtakesudifierent forms [according to'the type of truck empiqyed;especially in ,the ever'it the truck has a puirip to jwhichwaterishroug'htjfrom a suitable supply and by which it isfpumpd 'to raise itspressurefbefore it is; directed against thejfire. This mahifoldhasvciohr'iecting'fmeahs, preferably atthe rear of the truclg althoughnotnecessarily so, for the linefjor jlines 'of hose which "are connectedto or stretched; from the ,"supply'bf Water. It also'hasl'a plurality ofout1ets,';to,' ach of which is c onriected th ..independe'ri nes abovementioned. Such amanifoldmakesp' ssihie a yerysirnple and effectiveconstruction to w h may. b Qn 'e n qiri'o whichm y' be operated morelines f'of hojse than ,have be'n empl yed on any atj su 99 .";f 9ndi e$r i re np .l e,menifb ime e i of" 'diiierent 1 size arid j mayj alsohave connected theretothusiial boos'terline orlines with which manytrucks are provided. The number of irilts,

also the number of outlets in this manifold, will be dictated by thesize and design of the individual apparatus, and of course by therequirements demanded of that apparatus. Specific examples will be givenhereinafter.

In employing this apparatus according to one preferred method, the truckis first driven to the hydrant or other supply of water. At that pointone or more of the lines carried in the body of the truck is withdrawnand connected to the hydrant, or in some suitable way brought intocommunication with the water supply. Then the truck is driven from thatpoint to the fire and will be located at the most strategic point withrespect to the fire rather than to the hydrant. Since the said hose mayb fed from the truck body as it is driven away, that extends or lays theline or lines connected at the hydrant, and when the truck location hasbeen determined, the line or lines are broken (disconnected at aconvenient coupling) and appropriately connected to the inlet or inletsof the manifold, using so much of the hoseasis necessary. Simultaneouslywith this connection made just after the truck is positioned at thefire, the lines of hose connected at the outlets of the manifold arepulled from their individual compartments and are stretched to the fire.As many of the-m as are necessary may be employed. Of course, at anytime the remainder may be brought into action, or any one of them may beretired. The capacity of the manifold and of the lines running therefromto the supply of water is sufficient to take care of the demands made byall lines running from the manifold and which may be brought to play onthe fire. Such a procedure assumes that there is a watersupply atpressure sufficient for the intended use.

In the event a pump is to be employed, the construction of the manifoldwill be slightly changed. In that event, the inlet of the pump ispreferably to be extended back to the rear of the truck body. The lineor lines runnin to the supply of water are connected to this inletextended as described, while the manifold itself is connected at theexit or outlet side of the pump. The manifold is constructed in such amanner as to accommodate the several lines which are connected to it asabove described.

If a trailer pump is to be used, that trailer pump l connected, to thatlocation at which it is to be i operated, and the procedure forconnecting up and for bringing the various lines into play at the fireis the same as in the situation first described. In the followingparagraphs a detailed description of the mechanism, or at least apreferred form thereof, will be given by reference to the figures ofdrawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a fire truck constructed in accordance with theinvention.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the truck illustrated in Fig. 1.

I Fig. 3 is a view taken at the rear of the truck shown in Figs. 1 and2.

Fig. 4 is a section taken through the truck body and illustratingarrangement and construction of parts according to a modification.

Fig, 5 is a section showing in detail certain parts of a safetymechanism adapted to indicate when all hose has been withdrawn from acompartment. r

Figs. 6 and '7 are details of a modified form of safety device.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing the method of employing the firetruck of the instant case.

Fig. 9 is a similar view showing method of use when the truck issupplemented by a trailer pump.

Now referring to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, one preferred form of the inventionwill be described, that form pertaining to a fire apparatus in which apump is employed. The general construction of the truck chassis, powerplant, truck body, and pump follow along conventional lines, and infact, the invention is adapted to be applied to most all types of fireapparatus and is not dependent upon the size or power of the particularunit.

In Fig. 1 a plan view of a fire truck is shown in which the forwardparts have been broken away, but in which a motor i ll occupies theusual position in front of a cab ll behind which is a body generallyindicated by numeral i2. Steps or running boards l3and hl extend at thesides while a continuation of the step I l extends along the back of thetruck at. l 5.

The pump 16 may be of any satisfactory type such as would be releasablygeared to the motor H in a conventional manner (not shown), That pump isadapted to be connected to a source of water by connecting a hose to thecoupling I! at the rear of the vehicle, that coupling being at the endof an elongated pipe l8 which connects to the pump it and extends alongeither above or below the door of the truck body, preferably below thesame.

The outlet side of the piunp is connected through a shorter pipe 19 to amanifold which may take any one of several different physical forms but,preferably, is of U-shape and extends to either side of the connectionat the pipe l9 and along the length of the-truck body as at 20 at theright hand side, and 2|, at the left. The length of the U-shapedmanifold and its width across the vehicle depend upon the size'of theinner compartment of the body, and that manifold may be positioned abovethe floor at that part of the body, or may be concealed beneath thefloor in which event it will not interfere with the hose carriedtherein.

Heretofore the lines of hose which are extended from the truck to thefire have had to be connected after reaching the scene of the fire tooutlets generally positioned at the pump. According to the inventionherein described, each of the lines of hose to be extended to the fireis, except when drying, etc., connected at all times to an appropriateextension or outlet extending from the manifold, and after each use,these lines are connected and are stored in individual compartments inpreparation for being drawn out or stretched at the next fire. By theuse of a manifold and other constructions as herein described, it'ispossible to provide many more lines than would normally be used withconventional apparatus of comparable size. In the example herein givenby way of illustration, the manifold has enough outlets to supply four 2/2 lines, two at either side of the truck, and at the front of thetruck, two 1 lines. In addition to that, one or more booster lines aresupplied from the manifold. The sizes of lines just given are by way ofexample only, and it is to be understood that there may be more 1 lines,or in fact, all of the lines may be 1 /2" since that is a verysatisfactory size for nozzles delivering fog. Of course, it is intendedthat the nozzles may be of a type adapted to supply eithera solid streamor foe.

.geqgose for connection to the supply lines, and eachof these may beclosed off by a valve in the event only one line should be necessary. Anauxiliary connection 49 extends out to the side of the truck and may beconnected up to a water supply through coupling 50. A plurality ofoutlets at the sides and 52 at thefront supply lines of hose (not shown)but similar to those previously described with respect to the form ofthe invenparticular line has been withdrawn to that point necessarybefore water can be allowed to enter the line will be described. In thissectional view, part of the compartment is illustrated, the back of thecompartment being shown at 53, and the floor at 54. An opening is cut inthe floor and a contact piece or plunger 55 having a stem 56 is guidedby the openin and by an opening in bracket 5"! within the plunger andswitch housing 58. Normally, a spring 5t tends to maintain the plungerupwardly so that it would project an inch or 50 above the surface of thefloor 55. When the hose is stored in the compartment, it is so disposedthat the collapsed hose 69, of which there are several layers, will holdthe plunger downwardly against the tensionof spring 59. The positioningof parts is such that about the second fold of the line bears upon theplunger so that as the line is withdrawn from the compartment, the toplayers are removed first and the bottom layer is removed up to the pointwhere the layer resting on the plunger will be moved therefrom. ,At thattime enough of the hose has been withdrawn so that if water wereimmediately admitted, no damage could possibly result. One of the lights40 is connected to a switch 6|, which is preferably of a type having atoggle or other actuating member 52. That actuating memher is engaged bya projection 63 from the plunger stem, and'when released, the plungerwill move upwardly swinging the actuating member so as to close thecircuit to the light 46.

When it is desiredto reset the switch, as when replacing or storing theline of hose, the plunger is moved downwardly and the switch resetthrough an opening in the housing 58. A suitable opening is provided forthat purpose. Of course, the plunger must be held down until enoughweight of hose has been placed thereon so that the switch may not beaccidentally or unintentionally moved in which event the light mightagain be lighted.

In Figs. 6 and '7, a modification includes a housing 64 enclosing aswinging lever 65 having an upwardly projecting pin 66, the said pinbeing adapted to engage at the edge or side of the collapsed hose. Aspring 6'? normally under tension tends to pull that lever and its pinin a direction such that it will move to the dotted-line position ofFig. 7 in which the pin must be in the arcuate slot 63 and will contacta projection 68 thereby to complete the circuit and light the lamp All.This mechanism is reset by manually moving the pin to the position ofFig. 6, in which it will be held as soon as enough of the hose has beenreinserted in the compartment. This safety switch has the advantage thatit is not necessary 8 tQ.PIQV Z Y.QPP E n.t .Ql-, S1 5 Since projectingDin 651s always easily accessible.

The manifold asshown in Fig. {1 need not have provision for threedifferent couplings or connections, and in fact, may providefor aconnection of only one larger hose. Likewise, the manifold firstdescribed and shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 may provide for more than oneconnecting coupling, these details depend more or less upon the size oflines which'itis necessary or most desirable to employ. In certainlocalities it may be more desirable to use larger lines to the watersupply, while in others, more but smaller lines may b more adaptable.

Of course, with a pump it is possible to connect up to a supply of waterwhich is not under pressure, but in fact, which may have to be drawnfrom a lake or stream. In that event the appropriate solid lines areused.

,If a trailer pump is used, the construction of this apparatus and itsmethod of employment are particularly adapted to that supplementarysource of pressure. A trailer pump of any of the usual types is providedwith proper connections and a line to extend back to the source ofwater; also, the opposite side of the pump is connected to either one ormore lines such as are carried in the body of the truck and which arestretched from the trailer pump to the truck and properly coupled to themanifold at the position at which the truck is to be used. More of thedetails and manner of employing such a trailer pump will be described ina later paragraph, pertaining to the operation of the mechanism.

Operation Now referring to Figs. 8 and 9, one description of operationof the apparatus with respect to each of the forms therein illustratedwill be given. It is to be understood that some variation is, of course,possible, and applicant does not intend to limit himself, to only suchmethod of operation as is herein described by way of example.

In Fig. 8, a truck, generally indicated by numeral l0 and which may beof a type employing no pump and having a manifold similar to that ofFig. 4 or which may have a pump and, there- .fore, be constructed morein accordance with Figs. 1-3, is first. driven into close proximity to ahydrant H or other source of water supply. In this disclosure, referencehas been made to source of water or supply of water, but it is to beunderstood that the apparatus may be used with any fire-fighting orfire-extinguishing medium, and this description and the invention willby no means be limited to any particular chemical or to use only ofwater. In certain instances it may be more desirable to connect up to atank or other supply of fire-extinguishing liquid other than water.

The line of hose which is to be extended from the hydrant to the truckat the location at which it is to be employed is comprised ofinterconnected or coupled 50-foot lengths and the entire hose is storedin the compartment at the center of the truck. Upon arriving at thehydrant, the free end is coupled to the hydrant whereupon the truck maythen be driven to the scene of the fire and to that exact location atwhich it is to be employed. It is not necessary to extend the line ofhose by hand, and, therefore, a minimum of manual work is required, alsothe location of the hydrant has no bearing on the ultimate location ofthe truck as long as the -1 d st nce t h are. t sq a o re more of thehose than is available. In this particular instance, it is to be assumedthat the truck is located in the best strategic point with respect to afire in a building 12;

As the truck is driven to that point extending the line", a man maybefleft atthe hydrant so as to complete the coupling which need onlyhave been suificient to anchor that end of the hose. The fireman maycomplete'the coupling while the truck is driving to its ultimatepointof. lo-.. cation. That man at the hydrant will also turn on the waterwhen it is desired. 1 i Q Upon reaching the location at which it is tobe used, firemen within the truck break the conv nection in the hose 13at a convenient point, assuming that all of the hose has'not beenextended, and will couple that end to the manifold. What has just beensaid deals only with a single line. Of course, if a plurality of lineare to be extended, each line must be anchored and con-. nected back atthe hydrant or hydrants, and a plurality of connections madeat themanifold at e than a ng one. V

When the truck reaches its point of use, and while the manifoldconnection is being "madethe gates at the sides of thecompartments aredropped and the lines of hose are immediately extended, or at least, asmany of them as are to be used are extended. Thatrnay be done by arelatively few firemen; since thereis no resistance to Withdrawing thelines from their compartments. It "is also unnecessary tornake anyconnections since each line is attached to its respective outlet andeach line has its nozzle attached, If desired, extra lengths of hose maybe attached. If the full length is not required to reach the fire, allis withdrawn from the compartment and the excess is extended outand backawa from the fire.

Normally, the lines at the forward part of the truck are drawn outfirst, but that is not entirelynecessary, and in the event all lines areof the same size, it makes no difference which is to be employed exceptthat they will naturally be withdrawn from that side of the trucknearest the fire. h v v i As soon as the inlet connections are made,Water may be turned on at the hydrant'and will V be available at themanifold in a minimum'of time. As soon as a single line of hose has beenstretched to the "fire, its respective valve maybe opened and water maythen flow through line 13 into the manifold and through that line, forexample, line '14 or E5, the flow becoming stabilized as soon as air hasbeen expelled from the system.

The valves at the outlets may be opened as soon as the respective lineshave been withdrawn from their compartment. If safety mechanism such'asthat illustrated inFigs. 541 is employed, one of the lights 4! at theboard'38'will flash whereupon the appropriate switch 39 may be thrown toopen that particular valve. Of course, if those valves are to be openedmanually, or

.without benefit of a safety device or indicator systemlthen some visualor audible signal will be'given indicating the time-at which thevalveis'tobe opened. What hasbeen said with respect to operation of themechanism applies either [to a situation in whichhydrantpressure only isto be used or to those situations in which apump'er is employed eitherwith or without hydrant Orauxil ia'ry" pressure. The only differencewould be that" once the "connection through'to' the pump and in thetrailer.

. iii to the manifold has been completed, the clutch should be engagedthereby to start the pump.

Other equipment is readily available at close proximity to the fire, andthe fact that a very short amount of time is involved in connecting upand having .water available at the nozzles, makes it unnecessary, or atleast not especially desirable, to employ various types of boostermechanism depending upon tanks, extinguishers, and other devices pendingthe availability of water at the nozzles, that being something which hasnot been true when employing apparatus constructed accordingto the priorart.

Now referring to Fig. 9, certain of the apparatus is identical orsimilar to that of Fig. 8 and is indicated by like numerals havingprimes. Here a trailer pump it which is normally towed behind the tru-ckhas been dropped off at the hydrant ll. That trailer pump has connectedto its outlet side, lines 11, which are stored within the body of thetruck. The pump may also have the line 18 attached at the inlet side ofthe pump,

although that line may be carried on the truck in the event there is noappropriate place for it As the trailer is left at the hydrant, a man isdropped off at that point who makes the connection to the hydrant andwill remain to turn on the supply of water and also to operate thetrailer pump. The truck immetrailer pump. The operation from that pointis the same as that above described.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been disclosed, it isto be understood that the inventive concept may be carried out in anumber of ways. This application is, therefore, not to be limited to theprecise details described but is intended to cover all variations andmodifications thereof falling within the spirit of th invention and thescopeof the claims.

I claim:

.1. ,Ina fire apparatus, the combination of a vehicle, a manifoldincluding a U-shaped pipe, and having the ends of said pipe extendingfrom the rear of said vehicle to terminate in inlets to which lines ofhose to a source of water may be connected for conducting it to saidmanifold, a

*-plurality of outlets from said manifold, shut-off valves for each ofthe outlets and for the inlets, a body having space therein for the hoseby which the manifold is connected to the source of water, compartmentsin said body for lines of fire hose,

'1: each of said compartments being positioned adjacent one of theoutlets and having packed therein a line of fire hose connected to thatout- 1et,theconstruction being such that as said manifold is connectedto the source of water, the lines of fire hose may be independently andcollectively stretched to the fire, and water made available at themanifold and at each line of fire hose upon opening a valve in itsparticular manifold outlet. v

2. In a fire apparatus, the combination of a vehicle, a pump insaidvehicle, at least o'ne inlet for said pump, and a manifold leadingfrom the outlet side of said pump and having a pluralityof outletsspaced along the length of the said manifold and to each'of which isconnected a line of'fire hose, a body'having space thereln for lengthsofhose to be connected from the inlet of said pump to a source of water,and carrying means for each of the lines of fire hose so constructed andpositioned that each said line may be packed-adjacentlto the .outletitovvhich it is, connected and from which itmay'. belwithdrawn.

and readily stretched for use at the fire.

3. In a fire apparatus, .the, combination of. a vehicle including a.self- .pr opelled unit and, a,

towedunit, a pump insaid towed unit having. an inlet and an outlet,amanifoldin the self-pros pelledunit haying atleast one inlet. andalpineralityof out1ets,.,a1 body.,andspace therein for carrying hose forconnecting thelinlet of said manifold With the. outlet of thepump insaid towed unit, a plurality oflinesof fire hose, each connected toitsrespective outlet from the manifoldand means forlenclosingandcarrying each lineof fire hose in readinessfor independentextensionto and use at the fire.

4.. In afire apparatus, the combination of vehicle,,a pump in saidvehicle,.an inlet for said pump including an extension running to therear of the vehicle and terminating in connecting means for hose bymeans of which the said pump is to beplaced in communication with asource of water, a manifold leading, from the outlet side of; said pumpand including. a length ofpipe .ex-. tendingto either side of thevehicleandhaving at spaced intervals thereon a plurality of out-: lets,a line of fire hose. connectedtoeach-outlet, a body on said vehiclehaving space thereinforv the hosewhichconnectswfrom the inlet to the,source of water, and other .compartm'ents,- one. adjacent each ,outletfrom the. manifold, within.

which compartments the firehose for that particular outlet is packedandfrom which it may a compartment for each of said fire hose ,within whichit may be-pached and from whichsit may be Withdrawnreadily for extensionto and use at thefire.

6.,In ,a fire apparatus, the combination-of a vehicle, a manifold havingat least. one inlet and aplurality of outlets, valves for closingoffeach ofthe inl ts and outlets, a vehicle body having a centrallydisposedspace for storing and carrying hose for connecting said manifoldinlet to a source ofwaten-a plurality of compartments at the sidesof-said body, each said compartment being adjacent one of said manifoldoutlets and having compartment closing means to retain a lineof firehose-stored therein, and a line of collansible firehose packed in; each;compartment andconnectedto its respective manifoldoutlet,

7. In a fire apparatus the combinationoi a vehicleihavingalbody amanifold having inlets and asplurality.otoutlets,1said manifold being ofU- shapeleach side'. of Which extends along the side Of-xthe, vehiclebody' -said inletsbeing located at theliends" of .the u-shapedmanifold,a, centrally disposed-spacein said vehicl body for storing and carryin,hose for connectingsaid manifold inlet to,a source of water, aplurality of compartments the-lvehi'cle; and having 7 space for packinga .line

substantially to fill the compartment when packed of, fire. hose. andcompartrnent closing means for retaining said fire hosein eachcompartment and a line of collapsible fireho'sefpacked in eachcompartment and, 'conn'ectednto itserespectivel manifold outlet, Y

8. In a fire apparatus, the combination of a.

vehicle, a manifold having at least oneinlet and a plurality of ,out1ets,.v said manifold being of U,- shape and having its side/membersextending along the length of the vehicle and disposed along the lateralsides thereof, valve means at each inlet andoutlet, abody for saidvehicle having a centrally disposed space for carrying hose forconnectin the manifold inlet with a sourceof Water, extensions on saidvehicle body at each side of said manifold divided into a plurality ofcome, partments, one foreach of th outlets from said manifold, aplurality of lines of collapsible fire hose, one of said linesbeingstored in each said, compartment and means for connecting each said,

line of hose through its compartment to that outlet from the manifoldindividualv thereto, gate means at each compartmentfor, retaining the.

hose therein, the construction being such that each line of hose ismaintained in readiness for extension at a fire and so that water maybeavailable at said hose immediatelyupon connecting the manifold inletto a suppl of Water. and opening the valve means at thatIparticularflineof hose.

9. In a fireapparatus, the combination of a forming apart ofsa-id body.anddisposed along the sides thereof, one said compartment for eachoutlet from the manifold, said manifoldoutlets extending into the saidcompartments and having a coupling thereon to which is: connected oneend of a line of collapsible fire hose ofsuch length as therein, gatemeans-for enclosing said compartments and retaining the hose therein,said means being provided forremoval to permit withdrawal of the firehose, the construction being such that any or all of said lines offirehose may be withdrawnfrom their respective compartments andstretched to a fire and provided with water immediately upon connectionof the inlets of the manifold to a source of Water and llpon opening thevalves in the manifold outlets for those lines of hose which areextended.

10. In a fire apparatus, the combination of a vehicle having a body, amanifold-of U-shape having its sides-extending along the length of andadjacentthe lateralsides of the vehicle and body, and having the sideconnecting portion of the U-shaped manifold extending across the vehicleadjacent the front of the body, inlets for said manifold and apluralityof outlet means therefrom, some of which are directed toward the sidesof the vehicle andothers of which ar directed toward the front, saidbody having a centrally disposed space, for storing hose bywhich theinlet for the manifold is connected to a source of Water, said bodyfurther havinga plurality of rectangularly shaped compartments, someatthe sides and some at the front portion thereof, there being onecompartment for-teach outletfrom the manifold, an Opening at t e. interir p rtion c m-.-

, partment through which the outlet from the manifold is lead into theinterior of the compartment, a length of collapsible fire hose in eachcompartment and coupling means connecting said hose to the outlet meansprojecting into the compartment, valve means for each said outlet andclosure means for each compartment by which the packed collapsible hoseis retained within the compartment, said closure means being removablefor permitting withdrawal of the hose.

HUGH N. McNAIR.

REFERENCES CITED file of this patent:

Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Eisenbise Apr. 16, 1912 FergusonSept. 20, 1921 Ferguson Jan. 23, 1923 Rzeminiecki Nov. 7, 1933 CherryJune 24, 1941 Yost July 27, 1943 Willetts July 25, 1944

